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You are here: Home / Food & Recipes / Cooking / Thursday Recipe Exchange – Rice

Thursday Recipe Exchange – Rice

by Anne Laurie|  March 15, 20128:52 pm| 74 Comments

This post is in: Cooking, Open Threads

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From our Food Goddess, TaMara:

Rice is a staple in my house. I usually make a big batch and serve it with various things over the week. I’ve even switched over to brown rice pastas which I find far superior to most wheat pastas. Let’s get right to it. Here’s an overview of various types of rice:
__
Brown rice – I prefer long grain, though at the local Asian market I can get brown jasmine, basmati and aborio fairly easily, each with a unique flavor. Brown rice is nutty and a bit sweet. It’s a great compliment with any fish, beef, poultry or pork. The only addition it needs is a touch of butter and salt. Besides being full of flavor, it is also packed with nutrients. Per cup it has 5 grams of protein, 3 grams of fiber, calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium and niacin, as well as other vitamins and minerals. It’s a great side that adds flavor to many dishes. Brown rice cooks like regular rice in a 2:1 ratio of water to rice. But it takes longer to cook. About 45 minutes at a low simmer.
__
I still use white rice, though. White rice varieties are more delicate and are necessary when you want the rice to take on the flavor of a sauce or spice. Brown rice’s rich flavor can overpower the balance of flavors in some dishes.
__
Jasmine—A long grain rice, delicately fragrant, soft, moist and slightly sticky, compliments any Asian dish.
__
Arborio (white) – A medium grain rice, with a chalky white appearance. It is this chalky area that makes this grain unique, allowing the grains to absorb unusually large amounts of liquid and hence flavor during cooking. This is also what makes it especially suited to risottos, paellas, dolmades and other Mediterranean dishes.
__
Basmati— An aromatic long grain rice that has the unusual characteristic of doubling in length but not width during cooking. This dry, separating grain is especially suited to Indian and Middle Eastern dishes, such as curries, pilafs.
__
Now here’s a little something with brown rice:
__
Chicken and Rice Wraps
Substitute raspberries, peaches or plums if you like.
2 chicken breasts, cooked and cubed
1 cup baby spinach leaves
1 cup sliced strawberries
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1 cup cooked brown or wild rice
4 large tortillas (flavored ok)
__
Dressing:
1/4 cup Raspberry Dressing
2 tbsp mayonnaise
2 tsp red wine vinegar
Fresh mint
__
Mix together chicken, spinach, strawberries, pecans and rice. Mix together dressing ingredients, toss with chicken mixture. Let sit 15 minutes or more. Roll 1/4 of mixture in each tortilla.
__
Time to hit the comments with some of your favorite rice dishes. I’m curious if anyone makes a good paella. Next week: Soup

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Reader Interactions

74Comments

  1. 1.

    Raven

    March 15, 2012 at 9:00 pm

    Here’s a quick vid of a Paella we did for a wedding last summer.

  2. 2.

    JenJen

    March 15, 2012 at 9:02 pm

    Finally got my first Zojirushi rice cooker and this post is right up my alley. Thank you!

    If you don’t already have one, those things are worth their weight in, well, grain. #machinelove

    Oh shit, did I sound like McMegan just there?

  3. 3.

    beergoggles

    March 15, 2012 at 9:02 pm

    Brown rice goat biryani in a pressure cooker – one of the quickest and most delish rice dishes ever. It’s like paella but with flavor.

  4. 4.

    Raven

    March 15, 2012 at 9:03 pm

    I use a pressure cooker for my brown rice, it’s killer.

  5. 5.

    dmsilev

    March 15, 2012 at 9:09 pm

    @JenJen:

    Oh shit, did I sound like McMegan just there?

    Don’t worry, these days there’s easily available therapy treatment for McArdle Kitchen Symptom. Just go into your kitchen and make a béchamel sauce by hand; guaranteed cure.

  6. 6.

    jeffreyw

    March 15, 2012 at 9:09 pm

    @Raven: Nice pan!

  7. 7.

    Anne Laurie

    March 15, 2012 at 9:10 pm

    @JenJen:

    Finally got my first Zojirushi rice cooker and this post is right up my alley. Thank you!
    __
    If you don’t already have one, those things are worth their weight in, well, grain.

    I second that recc!

    Haven’t had the cooking chops to go beyond cooking rice (oh, and beans, thank you Raven) in mine, but I’m sure somebody will have a recipe here to tempt me…

  8. 8.

    beergoggles

    March 15, 2012 at 9:12 pm

    @Raven: Pressure cookers are total win. I don’t know why more people don’t use it. It makes longass processes so much faster – 40 minutes for amazing stock made from scratch, etc.

  9. 9.

    Raven

    March 15, 2012 at 9:12 pm

    @beergoggles: If your Paella doesn’t have flavor it’s not the Paella’s fault!

  10. 10.

    Raven

    March 15, 2012 at 9:13 pm

    @jeffreyw: It’s. . .a Paella!

  11. 11.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    March 15, 2012 at 9:14 pm

    ZOMG, raspberry vinaigrette is my very favorite. Hell, I even know how to spell it without googling.

  12. 12.

    Raven

    March 15, 2012 at 9:14 pm

    Paella is a Catalan word which derives from the Old French word paelle for pan[4] which in turn comes from the Latin word patella for pan as well.[5][6][7][8] Patella is also akin to the modern French poêle,[9] the Welsh padell,[10] the Italian padella,[11] the Old Spanish padilla,[12] the Polish patelnia,[13] and the New Mexican Spanish puela.[14]

  13. 13.

    Brother Shotgun of Sweet Reason

    March 15, 2012 at 9:15 pm

    Yep, been making paella for several years now. On a Weber grill, rice and all. Chicken, shrimp, scallops, and sausage on the grill, set aside; put the paella pan on, saute onions, garlic, peppers, throw in tomatoes, chicken stock, sliced olives and as much saffron as you can afford. Add peas at the end, mix in the seafood and meat and dish it up.

    Best I ever had was at a picnic in the South of France. We make hot dogs, they cook paella over an open fire!

  14. 14.

    p.a.

    March 15, 2012 at 9:15 pm

    @JenJen: i use my basic megamart 3 cup rice cooker all the time, does a fine job on white and brown, and quinoa. never tried wild rice (which is a grass, i know) yet. jasmine rice is the most problematic for those with glucose issues.

  15. 15.

    Raven

    March 15, 2012 at 9:15 pm

    @beergoggles: They’re scared. My red beans and rice and black eyed peas come out just yummy in the pressure cooker.

  16. 16.

    meander

    March 15, 2012 at 9:16 pm

    I have lots of favorite rice dishes, it’s a great staple that takes a huge variety of flavors. Lately I’ve been making Korean and Japanese rice bowls with sauteed shiitake mushrooms, grated carrots cooked in sesame oil, something bracing (chili sauce for Korean, umeboshi for Japanese), wilted greens, flavored tofu, and whatever else I can find.

    Here’s a recipe sketch with Middle Eastern flavors:

    * Start cooking a batch of brown rice.
    * Preheat the oven to 400 F. Peel a few beets (preferably golden to prevent the rice from turning pink) and dice them in 5 mm cubes. Toss with oil, season with salt and pepper, and turn out onto a baking sheet. Bake until tender. (This is the quick method described in a Melissa Clark column in the New York Times in January 2009.)
    * Cook a batch of chickpeas, or open a can and drain it.
    * Slice and wash a leek (or mince an onion). Cook in oil over medium-low heat until softened.
    * Chop a handful of mint and the leaves from a few thyme sprigs.
    * Crumble some feta cheese, mix with the herbs.
    * Just before the rice is done, reheat the beets, chickpeas, and leeks.
    * When the rice is done, combine everything into a serving bowl.

    Northern Californians: If you haven’t tried Massa brand brown rice, you’re missing a brown rice that has converted a lot of former brown rice haters like me. Organically grown near Chico, it’s available at farmers markets and some natural food stores.

  17. 17.

    beergoggles

    March 15, 2012 at 9:17 pm

    @Raven: haha, probably. All the paella I’ve ever made has tasted like the rice stole all the flavor from the meat and the meat was left tastless like tofu.

  18. 18.

    Some Guy

    March 15, 2012 at 9:17 pm

    Brown rice can be very gummy. Try this Alton Brown baked recipe. Takes an hour and it is absolutely perfect. I promise. Try is once and you will never cook brown rice on the stove top again. Not a lie. Truth.

    http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/baked-brown-rice-recipe/index.html

  19. 19.

    muddy

    March 15, 2012 at 9:18 pm

    I prefer the short grained brown rice, great nutty flavor, and can be cooked creamy like arborio. Also I think that organic short grain brown rice is a small enough category that it has not been Frankengrained.

    I make a big pot, then dish it out and warm it up over the week. I also use it when I make the dog food. I frequently cook the rice with a few slices of dried ginger in the water.

    I make a lot of curry kind of things, no recipe. I sometimes use the pre-cooked rice to make cheaty rice pudding. Warm it up with almond milk and nutmeg, mm.

  20. 20.

    Raven

    March 15, 2012 at 9:19 pm

    @beergoggles: yea, it’s easy to overcook the fixins

  21. 21.

    Schlemizel

    March 15, 2012 at 9:20 pm

    @beergoggles:
    love(ed) goat & love biryani but if your paella is tasteless you are doing it wrong, sorry

  22. 22.

    Comrade Mary

    March 15, 2012 at 9:22 pm

    I’ve got a cheap President’s Choice rice cooker that works beautifully, and now I’ve lost the knack of making brown rice on the stove.

    But I cook a big batch of medium grain brown rice every week in it (medium grain is a little starchier than long grain and more satisfying, I find). I cook my black beans in the pressure cooker, though.

    If you like brown rice, you might like Bhutanese red rice, which is a beautiful mahogany colour raw and pinkish-brown when cooked. It separates cleanly like basmati, and it has a slightly earthy/nutty flavour. It’s a little expensive, and I find that I just like medium grain brown better, but it’s worth trying. The link includes recipes.

  23. 23.

    TaMara (BHF)

    March 15, 2012 at 9:22 pm

    All you pressure cooker fans make me very happy. I don’t think I could do as much brown rice as I do without mine.

    @Raven: Love that video!

  24. 24.

    beergoggles

    March 15, 2012 at 9:23 pm

    @Raven: One of these days I’ll try it with goose or rabbit. Hopefully it’ll be gamy enough to retain some good taste.

    Honestly, I’m paranoid about cooking in a pressure cooker which is why I never leave it unattended. But the decent ones supposedly have multiple failsafes that don’t make me feel any safer.

  25. 25.

    Schlemizel

    March 15, 2012 at 9:26 pm

    Here is something you don’t see much of – when I was a kid the Swedes made this without the cinnamon but with cardamon, which is closer to the Indian style. Love that style with pistachios.

    2 1/2 cups of whole milk
    1/3 cup of uncooked rice
    Pinch of salt
    1 egg
    1/4 cup dark brown sugar
    1 teaspoon of vanilla extract
    1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon
    1/3 cup (40 grams) raisins

    In a medium heavy-bottomed saucepan, bring milk, rice and salt to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until the rice is tender, about 20-25 minutes. Stir frequently to prevent the rice from sticking to the bottom of the pan.

    In a small mixing bowl, whisk together egg and brown sugar until well mixed. Add a half cup of the hot rice mixture to the egg mixture, a tablespoon at a time, vigorously whisking to incorporate.

    Add egg mixture back into the saucepan of rice and milk and stir, on low heat, for 10 minutes or so, until thickened. Be careful not to have the mixture come to a boil. Stir in the vanilla. Remove from heat and stir in the raisins and cinnamon.

  26. 26.

    TaMara (BHF)

    March 15, 2012 at 9:28 pm

    @beergoggles: Totally understand that. Took me years. I have one that is so fancy it got me over my deep pressure cooker fear.

    Kuhn Rikon Pressure cooker

  27. 27.

    Raven

    March 15, 2012 at 9:30 pm

    @beergoggles: I have a Fagor, they are pricey but work well.

  28. 28.

    Raven

    March 15, 2012 at 9:31 pm

    Ha, I got put in mod cuz of the brand name of my french pressure cooker.

  29. 29.

    Some Guy

    March 15, 2012 at 9:33 pm

    Simple recipe:

    Brown rice
    Bed of crunchy greens with lemon dressing (1/2 lemon and 1/2 olive oil).
    Sweet and spicy shrimp (toss shrimps in brown sugar and favorite spice – I love Northwoods spice blend from Penzey’s but Montreal Steak Spice is a solid substitute – mostly sugar, enough spice to make your tongue sting).

    Sautee shrimps.
    Make a shallow bowl of rice on the plate. Put bed of greens in bowl of rice, top with shrimps and drizzle pans juices here and there.

    Absolutely delicious and very, very easy.

  30. 30.

    TaMara (BHF)

    March 15, 2012 at 9:34 pm

    @Just Some Fuckhead: Some days when I need a little summer I put together spinach, raspberry vinaigrette and walnuts. Brightens my day.

  31. 31.

    J.W. Hamner

    March 15, 2012 at 9:35 pm

    This post made me realize I don’t really make rice based dishes… I’ll serve things with white or brown rice, but I don’t ever make any variant of fried rice. Kind of odd.

    Pressure Cooker risotto is also quite good, but I don’t have any particular recipe I swear by.

  32. 32.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    March 15, 2012 at 9:36 pm

    @TaMara (BHF): I do the same thing. Maybe a little red onion too. And some croutons.

  33. 33.

    Schlemizel

    March 15, 2012 at 9:37 pm

    @Raven:
    not surprised, this is a ‘liberal’ blog – probably crawling with F A G O R s 8-{D

    @Raven:
    Yup – my mom was terrified of pressure cookers & I guess it was passed on. We got a pressure cooker as a wedding gift; because it is heavy for even heat it makes the best popcorn pan ever. I have not been trained in Prssure-cooker fu.

  34. 34.

    Omnes Omnibus

    March 15, 2012 at 9:37 pm

    @Raven: My mother has one that she has never used due to terror. Story abound from her childhood of exploding pressure cookers that killed whole families. Given the stories, I am surprised that the DoD hasn’t weaponized the things.

  35. 35.

    TaMara (BHF)

    March 15, 2012 at 9:38 pm

    @Just Some Fuckhead: I go with some fresh raspberries when I want to get fancy.

  36. 36.

    Schlemizel

    March 15, 2012 at 9:39 pm

    @J.W. Hamner:
    How do you make risotto in a pressure cooker? I love the stuff but can’t imagine the creaminess without the slow addition of stock

  37. 37.

    Just Some Fuckhead

    March 15, 2012 at 9:40 pm

    @TaMara (BHF): Meh, that’s too fruity for me.

  38. 38.

    Schlemizel

    March 15, 2012 at 9:40 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:
    did we share moms?

  39. 39.

    debit

    March 15, 2012 at 9:42 pm

    I love Somali rice. I make something like this, but without the chicken cubes. Sometimes I’ll add sauteed onion and/or raisins, but it’s delicious as is.

  40. 40.

    Jay S

    March 15, 2012 at 9:42 pm

    @Schlemizel: Similar to Kheer, which is basically white rice cooked in milk and cardamon and sugar until the milk is reduced by half. I don’t do it often enough to have a good recipe, but I have cheated a bit with evaporated milk and cooked rice.

  41. 41.

    Schlemizel

    March 15, 2012 at 9:44 pm

    @TaMara (BHF):
    Gad I love that combo. Spring greens in place of spinach when in season. Also a raspberry vinegar/ walnut oil dressing is great when the berries are not available. The sweet of the berry against the slight bitter of the green with the smooth round walnut oil.

  42. 42.

    Omnes Omnibus

    March 15, 2012 at 9:44 pm

    @Schlemizel: How tall is yours?

  43. 43.

    Raven

    March 15, 2012 at 9:45 pm

    My grandmother was badly burned as a child when she pulled a pan off the stove. My mother was obsessed with turning the handles so they didn’t stick out over the front off the stove.

  44. 44.

    Schlemizel

    March 15, 2012 at 9:50 pm

    @Jay S:
    I always cheat & use evap milk when I make kheer – it was the way I was taught.

    There is a place here that does it better than I have ever had anywhere – but the owner is a total ass so we don’t go there any more. I have tried a dozen different ways & many are good but none like that guys.

    The Swedes do it very similarly (how did they get that? Did the Vikings make it to Bangalore?)

  45. 45.

    Schlemizel

    March 15, 2012 at 9:51 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:
    5’2″, round as a barrel of love.

  46. 46.

    Omnes Omnibus

    March 15, 2012 at 9:55 pm

    @Schlemizel: Mine is a little shorter and smaller. So, no, I don’t think we share a mother.

  47. 47.

    Jay S

    March 15, 2012 at 9:56 pm

    @Schlemizel: Cardamon is big in Scandinavian cooking. My mother added it to donuts, and it’s an essential in Julekake. I’m not sure how that came into trade in the Nordic regions.

    ETA I’m not sure how rice got there either, but it is more ubiquitous than cardamon.

  48. 48.

    Omnes Omnibus

    March 15, 2012 at 9:58 pm

    @Schlemizel:
    @Jay S: Swedish vikings went east. They traveled quite far and also founded kingdoms. Kievan Rus was a viking settlement.

  49. 49.

    J.W. Hamner

    March 15, 2012 at 10:03 pm

    @Schlemizel:

    The idea that you have to stir it for hours is basically a myth. The creaminess comes from the starch on the surface of the rice… and stirring and gradual stock additions have nothing to do with it… that’s just for even cooking.

    As for a basic recipe it’s:
    3.5-4 cups of stock to 1.5 cups of rice.

    4 minutes at high (15 psi) pressure. Quick release. Then maybe up to 5 minutes of cooking and stirring to get to your preferred level of doneness and consistency, adding more stock if you need to. Add your cheese etc and serve immediately on warmed plates/bowls.

  50. 50.

    beergoggles

    March 15, 2012 at 10:03 pm

    @TaMara (BHF): I saw the kuhn rikon and I wanted to get it just because it looked good but couldn’t justify the expense.. so..

    @Raven: I have the F a g o r that u do lol..

    If yous want to try it, for the biryani the closest recipe I can find is this: http://mepoornima.wordpress.com/2011/05/02/pressure-cooker-mutton-biryani/
    But I use buttermilk instead of curd or yogurt and substitude an additional cup of buttermilk for 1 cup of water. Also I keep a jar of mint (and cilantro, ginger and garlic) masala in the fridge that I use as marinades for other stuff (it’s sooo good for kebabs) that I also use in the biryani instead of some of the other spices.

  51. 51.

    muddy

    March 15, 2012 at 10:05 pm

    I like a Moroccan style rice as well. Short grain brown rice, dried apricots, red pepper, garlic, onion, cumin, coriander, cinnamon.

    Cooking white rice the Persian way I would use dill.

  52. 52.

    Raven

    March 15, 2012 at 10:08 pm

    @beergoggles: thx

  53. 53.

    Schlemizel

    March 15, 2012 at 10:30 pm

    @Omnes Omnibus:
    Yeah, the Germans had a lot of cities in Russia too. I doubt the got to lotus land though. But they luves them rice & cardamom.

    For those not familiar, the seeds are dark & sorta comma shaped. My great aunt had a daughter – first one to go to college – home with her room mate. The room mate was a bit too good for these clod farmer Scandinavians & it irked Aunt Ellen. She watched as the girl picked the caramom seed out of the rice pudding & then sweetly said – “Ya know (yes they all sounded like Fargo) I’m having a dickens of a time keepin the mice outta da pantry!”

  54. 54.

    Schlemizel

    March 15, 2012 at 10:31 pm

    @J.W. Hamner:

    THANKS!

    now I can’t wait to try this

  55. 55.

    Omnes Omnibus

    March 15, 2012 at 10:37 pm

    @Schlemizel: Interesting little story on vikings, trade, and technology.

  56. 56.

    J R in WVa

    March 15, 2012 at 10:42 pm

    BEWARE the Ides of March!

    I have read somewhere that rice can interfere with the absorption of iron, and contributes to anemia in cultures which eat it exclusively as their grain/carb.

    I too like to use pressure cookers, esp. for beans, being naturally impatient. My Grandma used hers for everything, green beans, soup, you name it.

    Once she had a tomato seed or something clog the vent, and the safety plug gave way long before the pressure reached explosive levels. However, when the internal pressure went from 15 lbs to nothing, the contents became partly vaporized, and the whole pot of vegetable-beef soup came out of the safety onto the kitchen ceiling.

    I don’t remember how many coats of enamel etc. we put on that ceiling, but it looked odd when she sold the house many years later. But no harm done to any people, she was in the living room at the time!

    How bad was the WVU game? I couldn’t look after I saw a score from the middle of the game…

  57. 57.

    schrodinger's cat

    March 15, 2012 at 10:49 pm

    1:2 is too much water for basmati, use 1:1.5 instead. Just remember to wash the rice in a couple of changes of water and drain in a colander. The rice will have a much better texture.

    To use as an accompaniment to the main meal make Jeera (Cumin)
    Rice, for special occasions try fish or shrimp biryani (layered rice casserole)

    Jeera rice

    1.5 cups basmati
    2.25 cups water
    1 tbsp whole cumin seeds
    1 onion thinly sliced
    2 tsp oil
    salt to taste

    Heat oil in a sauce pan, turn heat to high
    Add cumin, when the cumin becomes fragrant,
    toss in the onions, cook until the onions are transparent
    then add the rice and toast it, have the water ready, add water, when the water begins boiling, add salt, reduce heat to low, cover the sauce pan with a tightly fitting lid. Resist the urge to open the pan. Open the lid after 15 minutes, the water should be absorbed by now. If you have done it right, the rice will smell wonderful, hence the name basmati (great smelling rice)
    Variation: You can add cashews and craisins or sultanas when the onions are transparent and before you add rice.

  58. 58.

    jafd

    March 15, 2012 at 11:08 pm

    Picked up my rice cooker – Toshiba – at a porch sale 30 years or so ago. Usually cook the supermarket’s cheapest with vegetables (you can put broccoli stems in at the beginning, the florets to steam near the end) (has big flat-bottomed pot, you can fry up onions & garlic, then add rice and liquid), leftovers (you’ll know that ‘Musgovian’ meats, etc, stayed at boiling point long enough to kill germies) (you can rinse out bottles of catsup, mayonnaise, BBQ sauce, etc, add to rice’s cooking water)

    Having acquired the appliance cheaply, been inspired to stretch it’s capabilities to the max without fearing catastrophic failure.

  59. 59.

    Schlemizel

    March 16, 2012 at 12:00 am

    @J R in WVa:

    Ides come for the Latin word for half, which is why it was historically the 15th of the month. If Auggi & Jules hadn’t stolen days to make their months longer and we had not figured out that 360 days do not a year make it would have been perfect.

    This has been another in my series of Cliff Claven moments – to be forewarned is to be forearmed – and being four armed makes buys suits a pain – GO JOE!

  60. 60.

    Mnemosyne

    March 16, 2012 at 12:03 am

    @J R in WVa:

    I have read somewhere that rice can interfere with the absorption of iron, and contributes to anemia in cultures which eat it exclusively as their grain/carb.

    I wonder if that’s why rice and beans is a classic dish across such a wide range of cultures — beans are very iron-rich, so that would mitigate the effect of the rice.

  61. 61.

    Mnemosyne

    March 16, 2012 at 12:04 am

    Also, too, I’m surprised we’ve gotten this far in a rice-related thread and no one has brought up Roger Ebert’s rice cooker cookbook.

  62. 62.

    Schlemizel

    March 16, 2012 at 12:14 am

    @Omnes Omnibus:
    Very interesting – I knew they had made the Mediterranean and deep into Central Russia but I had never heard that they made the Middle East by the “back door”. If only they had spent a bit more time developing their Western discoveries we could be suffering from the high employment, great healthcare and decent public services those soshallist vikings have.

  63. 63.

    asiangrrlMN

    March 16, 2012 at 12:28 am

    Gotta be white rice. It’s the one staple food from my childhood I will never ever ever give up. And, rice cookers are wonderful.

  64. 64.

    pseudonymous in nc

    March 16, 2012 at 12:31 am

    @beergoggles:

    Pressure cookers are total win. I don’t know why more people don’t use it.

    Old fears of them exploding and redecorating the walls and ceiling in an inpromptu fashion. I’ve got a decent Fagor that does the job well, though for rice, I sort of prefer a dedicated rice cooker, though it doesn’t have to be a magic fuzzy logic one.

  65. 65.

    pseudonymous in nc

    March 16, 2012 at 12:38 am

    @Raven:

    my french pressure cooker.

    Mine too — though they’re Spanish, and pressure cookers are v. pop. in Spain. Use your 20% Bed/Bath/Beyond coupon to get one fairly cheap, and the pots/pans themselves are fantastic for non-pressure cooking, as they’re heavy stainless.

    That said, I prefer a dedicated (though not an expensive) rice cooker for plain rice. And I like mujaddarah, rice plus lentils plus caramelised onions, served with spiced yogurt.

  66. 66.

    Maeve

    March 16, 2012 at 1:22 am

    The last time I visited my brother in Dallas, I went to an Pan-Asian supermarket and among other things brought home 20 lbs of rice. I live in Alaska and when we’re out of state (a.k.a. “Outside” or “South”, we shop)

    None of your stinkin brown or jasmine rice

    5 lbs of black rice also known as “Forbidden” rice
    5 lbs of purple rice
    10 lbs of “red cargo rice”

    The black rice was the only one I’d heard of before, a short grained, really dense and intense rice, originally supposedly restricted to the empower, hence forbidden. Needs strong gamey flavors to go with it, mushrooms, duck, erc.

    The purple rice turned out to be almost the same, but cheaper.

    Red cargo rice was my favorite. Longer grain, nutty but not as dense. It is my favorite +++++++

    Wish I could buy more. Next time I visit my brother I may dedicate a whole suitcase.

  67. 67.

    Yutsano

    March 16, 2012 at 1:36 am

    I have a perfect never fail rice ratio:

    1 2/3 cup liquid
    1 cup rice

    I don’t have the space for a rice cooker. Which is fine as I’m perfectly content to make it in a pot. And I like short brown rice with teriyaki and such.

  68. 68.

    MattF

    March 16, 2012 at 2:24 am

    Another vote for Zojirushi. I recently got a 3-cup ‘fuzzy logic’ model– so it will cook any grain, e.g., steel-cut oats, quinoa, couscous, wild rice, in addition to any kind of regular rice. All perfectly, effortless restaurant-quality. And it beeps a rendition of ‘Twinkle, twinkle, little star’ when you start the cooking cycle, so what more could you ask for?

    Added: And it’s a little larger than a toaster.

  69. 69.

    Mnemosyne

    March 16, 2012 at 2:47 am

    @MattF:

    One of the reasons I’m not fond of our current microwave is that it gives a single peremptory “beep” when it’s done. It just seems rude.

    I am more than a little jealous that a knitting blogger I read has a washing machine that plays Schubert to her when it’s done.

    ETA: Okay, just in case no one believed me, I just found a YouTube video by someone who has the same washing machine. Samsung, of course.

  70. 70.

    Jay S

    March 16, 2012 at 3:19 am

    Since we are getting an earlier than usual start in the morning, I just threw together a crockpot of congee for a quick breakfast. Rice, lots of stock + water and salt with odds and ends thrown in after it cooks.

    This thread was the inspiration.

  71. 71.

    ExpatDanBKK

    March 16, 2012 at 11:44 am

    Easy-peasy rice cooker ratio formula from Mrs ExpatDan (she an expert being a mash-up of Thai, Chinese & Indian ancestry): put as much rinsed rice as you want into the cooker. Add water until it reaches the first knuckle of your pinkywith the tip of said pinky just touching the top of the rice. Perfect every time. And oddly enough that distance is nearly universal, no matter the size of the individual.

  72. 72.

    ExpatDanBKK

    March 16, 2012 at 12:01 pm

    Easily our favourite rice dish is Singaporean Chicken Rice. Asia soul food!

    Here we go:
    ++++++++
    Ingredients

    Chicken
    1 very fresh chicken (preferably free range)
    1 tbsp Chinese rice wine
    1 tbsp light soy sauce
    6 slices fresh ginger
    1 clove garlic, slightly bruised
    2 spring onions, chopped in a few pieces
    1 tsp sesame oil
    1 tbsp light soy sauce
    ½ tsp salt

    Chicken Stock
    Chicken bones, such as whole chicken carcass, or a kilo of chicken wings or legs
    3 pieces of ginger
    2 spring onions

    Chicken Rice
    3 cups long grain rice
    2 tbsp chicken or pork fat (this is best, but peanut oil can be used instead)
    2-3cm ginger, grated
    3-4 cloves garlic, chopped very finely or grated
    1-2 tsp salt (to taste)
    3 ½ cups chicken stock according to rice instructions (or more, reserved from boiled chicken)
    2 pandan leaves (optional, but you should try to find/use them)

    Chilli Sauce (or cheat by using bottled Sri Racha sauce)
    10 fresh red chillies, seeds removed
    1-2 cloves garlic
    5cm fresh ginger
    2 tsp chicken stock (from the boiled chicken)
    Juice from kaffir limes to taste
    Salt to taste

    Ginger Sauce for Dipping
    75g ginger
    6 garlic cloves
    ½ tsp salt
    2 tsp lime juice
    2 tbsp chicken stock (from the boiled chicken)

    Chicken Soup
    Chicken stock (from the boiled chicken)
    Chopped spring onions and/or small amount of chopped cabbage

    ++++++++++++

    Preparation

    Bring a pot of water to the boil, the pot being large enough to fit the whole chicken. While the water is heating, rub chicken inside with rice wine and soy sauce. Roughly chop three pieces of ginger, garlic and one spring onion and then blend in a food processor. Place mixture inside chicken.

    When the water boils, turn heat off and place the chicken, remaining three pieces of ginger and spring onion in the water. Leave the chicken to stand in the water for one hour. After the first five minutes of standing, lift up the chicken, drain the water from the stomach cavity and put chicken back in the pot. Repeat this process two or three times during the cooking period to make sure the chicken cooks inside as well as outside.

    After 30 minutes, turn on the heat to bring the water back to almost boiling point, then turn heat off. The chicken, never being allowed to boil, will be very tender and juicy. At the end of the hour, remove chicken and rub with remaining soy sauce combined with sesame oil and salt, and then cut into bite-sized pieces.

    For chicken stock, add extra chicken bones or pieces, three slices of ginger and two spring onions to the water in which the chicken was cooked. Boil for one to two hours until stock has a strong chicken flavour. Discard chicken bones/pieces and strain the stock through a muslin cloth.

    For chicken rice, wash the rice and drain well (the more water in the rice, the less chicken flavour! Some recommend drying the rice in a tea towel). In a wok, fry chicken fat until oil is released and then add the ginger and garlic and fry well.

    Remove from heat and discard the chicken fat and skin. Add the rice and salt and stir fry briskly for about 1-2 minutes. Transfer rice into an electric rice cooker or pot. Add pandan leaves (tie them in loose knots) and then the chicken stock as per normal rice cooking procedures/volumes.

    For chilli sauce, roughly chop chillies, garlic and ginger and then blend in a food processor. Add chicken stock, lime juice and salt to taste. Will keep in covered container in the refrigerator for a few days, but is best served fresh.

    For ginger sauce, roughly chop ginger and garlic and then blend in a food processor. Add chicken stock, lime juice and salt to taste.

    For chicken soup, ladle a small amount of hot strained stock into serving bowls. Add finely chopped spring onion. If serving with cabbage, you will need to cook the cabbage in the stock for a short while before serving.

    Absolute heaven! And despite the length, not hard to make.

    Enjoy,
    Mr & Mrs ExpatDan

    PS — Of course, living here in beautiful SE Asia, we can pop out to the nearby street vendor and get a plate of this goodness for a couple of bucks :^P

  73. 73.

    J.W. Hamner

    March 16, 2012 at 9:06 pm

    @ExpatDanBKK:

    That looks like a great recipe! I’ve made Hainanese chicken rice once from a decidedly inferior recipe… e.g. their “soup” was just the chicken simmering liquid, which was unsurprisingly insipid… and I’ve heard such great things about it from people like Bourdain that I might have to try your recipe in the hopes I can see what the real thing tastes like.

    In other news the NY Times has a recipe for Persian Jeweled Rice(Javaher Polow) that seemed appropriate for the thread.

  74. 74.

    Michele C

    March 17, 2012 at 6:08 pm

    We’ve been eating mostly vegetarian lately and I made a vegetarian paella with roasted tomatoes on top and eggs cooked whole in the rice that was delicious. I used arborio rice and my own homemade stock and cooked it from stove top to oven. I also make pressure cooker risotto all the time. Recently, I did one with butternut squash, parmesan, and edamame that was pretty darn good.

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